One World, One Love, One Vision?

Dedicated to a follower, HS, who enjoyed the post on Lotus and asked whether a 'one world' can ever exist where we do things for the greater good of mankind and where the need of the collective supersedes that of an individual.

We are told that race is healthy. The human race is moving forward from cave-dwelling nomads to space-exploring nations by this very trait, the race to be better than the other.

Nature is hostile. It does not care two hoots for the weak and the slow. It shows its mighty fury to those who cross its path. Only the fittest survive. Biology transmits this survival trait to the next generation so that the memory of how to thwart that adversity is implanted in their DNA.
But we are told we have six senses, unlike members of the animal kingdom. We have developed empathy and compassion for the weak and the downtrodden. Still, the only thing keeping us from killing each other is the law, fear of retribution for our actions in this life, the next, or the afterlife if rebirth is not on the menu. Communal living with rules ensured that even the weaker of its people would be taken care of, barring which nothing is going to stop from punching another blue-black or kicking away the walking stick of the invalid and laughing his eyes out. Lurking deep in the crevices of the grey matter is the dormant reptilian brain, which is triggered whenever the gatekeepers take a break. The desire to dominate is there. The carefree attitude of surrounding to the pleasures of the physical body can easily be bargained for.

The world has all the resources to meet human needs, but not its greed. The idea of universal equality is only a utopian dream which is as common as a flying pink elephant. When we are poor, we demand equality, fair play and a level playing field. The idea of socialism and communism fascinates us. As we climb the ladder of prosperity, our desire never to part with our hard-earned money declines exponentially. We realise that our wealth is worth every drop of sweat that comes through our pores. Parting was not just sentimental but unnecessary as we reminisced the hungry nights we endured in pursuit of prosperity. We tell ourselves life is very fickle and we must prepare for a rainy day. Some call it greed; others call it wise planning. Empathy knocks in a different form. We do not want our offspring to endure the hardship we had to experience. Also, leaving a legacy behind is nice! We are often told the need for one is only as important as the collective! It has been ingrained in us the idea that Lady Justice is blind to external interferences. She only metes justice as it is, irrespective of the offender's status, race, creed and intellectual prowess. What we are not told is justice is all about how deep-pocketed the suspect is. If favourable sentences are not obtained, one can go on and on higher on the levels of courts available in the legal system. Justice can be bought with all the money one can pay. For political offences, as judges have political affiliations, one wonders how impartial they are.

Even the treatment of various accused is glaringly different. A leader who foolishly (or wilfully) siphoned off the nation's coffers saunters to the court with his flashy designer suits, whereas a couple of mischievous motorcyclists who decided to film their dangerous motorcycle stunts get dragged to the courts in orange police-lockup overalls handcuffed under the flashes journalists' flash camera. And do not get me started on selective prosecution of political and even civil cases by the Attorney General Chambers. Those who followed the path of communism/socialism soon realised the longer it stayed in power, the more it looked like the systems it wanted to eradicate. It believed it wanted to replace the hegemony of Romanov over the peasant land. Fast forward, we see Russia being run by oligarchs. The short-lived satiety came to be replaced with hyperinflation and Kafkaian governmental squeeze. The distribution of wealth has a funny way of redistribution even if all the world's wealth is divided equally amongst its population. Experiences from COVID-19, slum population and national calamity are testimony to this.

All the things that we wanted the world to be - One World, One Vision, One Way of Thinking- are just piped dreams. Listening to Oprah and her talk show, we thought we could change the world with a rational Western way of thinking. Bob Marley tried to change the world with 'One Love' and his message to get together and feel alright. And Beatles with 'All You Need is Love'. Then we grew up. We realise that the economy has to trickle down. We cannot expect society to benefit solely from a 'trickle-up' economy. The world is chaotic; it will always be, and within that churning sea of chaos, there will be a constant flow that moves things forward. The little eddy currents happen, but the essential thing is the forward propulsion of the human race. Along the way, there are bound to be casualties of civilisations and people not acclimatised to change.

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Life in the fringe!

Wind River (2017)

Director: Taylor Sheridan

We are all seekers. We want to understand things. Our brains have been wired to try to understand things around us. As children, we feel insecure with unfamiliar faces and environments. We wonder about the darkness that we see outside. We try to find out when exactly the light goes off when we shut a fridge door. We eavesdrop to find out where babies come from. We want to know what actually happens when we die. Looking at the stars, we wonder if they are any intelligent life forms there. Did Santa Claus put those presents under the Christmas tree? Did God help himself to Prasadham that we offer?

As we grow older, everything will fall into its place. We learn biology, geography, theology, astronomy, and so on. 

Biology gives glorious explanations to all the burning questions we want to know but are too shy to ask. Geography demarcated the lines drawn between humans. Theology told us to limit our inquiries to things that our simple minds can comprehend. Astronomy reinforced the notion that we do not matter. Yet we think we know everything and try to put a closure to everything. 

Rituals are mocked as their meanings are lost!

Was there police brutality when Kugan and many Malaysian Indian petty thieves died in custody? Was the fireman,  Muhammad Adib, assaulted or was his accident a misadventure? Was MH370 remotely controlled and disposed of by China without a trace? Is Jho Low really off everyone's radar? Is Mohd Ridzuan, Indraganthi's husband, who converted his underaged daughter, really untraceable?

We like to think that some questions have no answers. That is what the victors believe when they write history. Some things can never be verified. The system is controlled by people of interest who will want to carry items in specific ways.

Nothing has changed much from the time of slavery. In the heydays of sugar plantations in the Caribbean, it is unbelievable that it was thought it was economically viable to work slaves to death and replace them every seven years than to care for them with their medical and sanitary needs. They were mere commodities in the marketplace. The world has no qualms about subjugating God's creations to such humiliation, just based on their skin colour, appearances, culture and poverty of military might. Nothing has much, all through the Industrial Age, space age and now in the 21st century. 

We are familiar with 'Black Life Matters'. The often-forgotten part of society is the Native American community. Before Columbus and the band of looters arrived in the New World, thinking they had found an alternative route to India, the Native Americans had a rich culture and complex civilisation. Now, they remain lost, forgetting their ancient and symbiotic living with Nature. 

They remain in a sad state. Their social indices all remain depressing. Many unexplained deaths in custody, deaths with unexplainable etiologies and the plethora of cold cases remain frustratingly common in the community. 

This story revolves around the rape and death of a young Native American woman. For the layperson, it appears like a cut-and-dry case. Unfortunately, the bureaucracy does not make it so simple. The police investigation drags its feet. The autopsy cannot make it simple for the prosecution to persecute. Most end up as cold cases. 

It looks like the long arm of the law and the machinery that works for it has no interest in dispensing justice. It is more interested in pleasing its masters and playing fetch for them. 

That may be why fringe societies have no confidence in authority and instead take care of their own affairs by compulsion. The law only carries clout as long as people think their interests are protected. 

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Laws to protect the protected?

So a niece, lured by all the promises of a blissfully contended modern life by being a proud owner of an iPhone 14Pro, decided to 'not so smartly' and allegedly took her aunt's debit cards to purchase her ticket to freedom. Unfortunately, the long arms of the law had caught up with her. Her long march through the corridors of justice in handcuffs excites the journalist of the country's premier newspaper. Of course, nobody in the country will have the gravitas to question the need to handcuff a petty thief. Even someone who allegedly squandered the nation's sovereign and turned the country into an international embarrassment still cat-walked these same corridors flashing his branded suits, dressed to the nines uncuffed.

That is the thing about the law. The law and enforcements target the commoner. Paradoxically, the legal hierarchy is there to protect the high-heeled. Wealth can ease the path to procure all the lawful representation money can buy. If a person fails to obtain an acquittal, have no fear. The higher courts are at your disposal, with all the robed sharks demanding an arm or a leg to give you a clean chit. At an even higher loot, at an even higher court, if retrial should fail, experts to the experts can be summoned with much pomp and splendour to tear up the charge sheet.

A poor man can just pray for a miracle, an early discharge for good behaviour and God's grace at heaven's gate or purgatory.

With 160 criminal charges, they still
won elections and graced the august
house of democracy.

The recent triad type of killing of a gangster turned politician, Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf while under police custody in Prayagraj opened a can of worms of the politico-law enforcement- electoral machinery-mafia unholy union, at least in India. I think this web of deceit is confined to third-world countries, banana republics, and even mature democracies. Just that the mainstream media is quick to quash such bad publicity of their own nation but is super efficient in highlighting other countries as a Wild West.

Over the years, through mishaps and experience, government offices have secured a safety mechanism to ensure transparency, efficiency and accountability. Many checks and balances have been instituted towards this end. An honest leader will follow the pre-set path of prosperity, the primary aim of the nation's and citizens' well-being. Their tenure is limited, and they have to stamp their legacy in a short time. Undoubtedly, there would be backstabbers who would wait to pull their rug under your feet anytime, jealous the leader had beaten him to the post. Honey-trapping, freebies and lure to corruption would be red-carpeted for the weak-hearted to fall into. Keeping all this in mind, a leader who had gone through the rank and file would know how to protect himself. The system itself would ensure no hanky-panky is easy to carry out.

If not for opposition to bringing in foreign lawyers, bigwigs from Queen's
Counsel would be sauntering haughtily along our corridors of native justice.

With all these safety nets in place, it is challenging to unknowingly earn himself a corruption charge. Is it wrong for me to assume that a leader charged with criminal breach of people's trust is guilty unless proven otherwise? With all the dos and don'ts at their disposal, and the law feels there is a case for the leader to answer, what do you make out of all these? Small fries, sharks, and whales are surfacing with their petrifying shenanigans.

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We did it our way - Malaysian Tsunami!

Probably the most iconic picture of the times. 
The hands that were to protect the people 
are used to prevent the rights of the member 
of the public to exercise his democratic rights. 
Dr Streram Sinnasamy being prevented from 
submitting his nomination papers for failing to 
display the commission's identity tag (which 
was not given to him in the first place). 
This image and many like this must have 
evoked emotions so compelling to move 61 
years of a single rule party. 

Credit: Free Malaysia

A commonly uttered colloquial Tamil proverb goes, "you cannot hide a whole wax gourd under your serving of rice!" Once you start eating your rice, your deliciously spiced gourd will undoubtedly reveal itself. A lie cannot be hidden from public knowledge forever. Eventually, the truth will tell itself, sooner or later.

When the whole world was hurling abuses and accusation against the leaders of the country, the people stayed quiet. When nations ridiculed us, they kept mum. When day to day living became difficult, they persevered. When new taxes stared their ugly head under the pretext of saving the nation, they sacrificed. When the taxmen came knocking and demanding, they relented. When the stories were spun again and again to make them look like fools, they must have wised up. But they had a funny of showing it or rather hiding it.

Or maybe, the party which claims to have received the Decree of Independence on a silver platter are using their colonial master's tactic of 'divide and rule'. Instigating hatred and fear amongst each other, everyone is left to their own devices in their safe cocoons. 

The heat and the long wait are just moments in time.
The results, the future of generation next, are history
in the making. © FG

When the standard response in any part of the world where public opinion meant something would be the widespread demonstrations of displeasure and violence, they did not go along that line. The ghost of racial riots in their infancy of independence remained vivid in their minds. They knew unrest did not augur well for businesses and they knew money moved mountains.

On the outside, the general public appeared aloof. A few incidents here and there showed the might of the ruling power. Perhaps, they were afraid. Maybe they did not care. Hyenas surviving on kills of the guardians of the lion's share came out on a prowl. The whole might of the executive, judiciary and legislative forces were mobilised to protect these vermins.

They also say 'still water runs deep' or 'don't expect the calm waters not to have crocodiles' and 'the potato grows in spite of the silence'. Beneath the surface, in homes, in cyberspace, despite the propaganda that the powers that be spruced, resentment actually ran deep. Social media lit with visuals of the tyranny of injustice and volumes of literature of wrongdoings.

Not the middle finger © FG

The sleeping giant of the silent public finally awoke from its seeming slumber of impassivity. In drones, they swarmed, from near and far, to their polling stations on that historic day 9th of May 2018. 

Malaysians finally spoke. They reject injustice. In a bittersweet moment, it seems that public has forgiven the 'dictator' who could be blamed for mending the rules to start the rot and elect their 93-year-young ex-PM as their new premier. The 93-year-young had earlier made his peace with his enemies and the people whom he had witch hunted during his tenure, and vice-versa the victims, for the common cause of saving a nation. 

Back in 2015 during an international marathon meet in Chiengmai, an Indonesian participant asked my friend, upon discovering that he is a Malaysian. "What is wrong with you people? Putting up with a kleptocratic authoritarian. In Indonesia, we would have just shot him!"

Now, I know the answer. We in Malaysia know the supreme power of the people. We believe in the democratic system. We did it our way, no bloodshed, no anarchy, no storming into palaces or the use of vigilantes. We used the ballot box. We are not apathetic to our surroundings after all. We are Malaysians. 

Credit: Lat

https://asok22.wixsite.com/real-lesson 

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All lives matter?

*Terms and conditions apply!

The newest battle cry screams 'Black Lives Matter'. Of course, it is the only politically correct thing to say, that all lives are precious, irrespective of race, colour and class.

Nice on paper, nice to hear but not in practice. It is an undeniable fact that some lives matter more than others. Rather than thinking that race, colour and creed are determining factors on who should live and who should just bite the bullet and disappear, I would like to think that money is the common denominator that saves everybody's skin in the end.

In this time and age, the dictum 'Health is Wealth' no longer holds water. It should be rewritten as ' Wealth assures good Health'. As the cost of medical services snowballs by leaps and bounds, governments and health providers are running to cut cost. Even though the world has the technological know-how or at least have access to some experimental techniques to treat some potentially fatal illnesses, the cost may be a limiting factor. How many times have we heard of doors to expensive modalities of treatment being shut for non-affordability? With the wave of stacks of the greenback, even cadavers would open their gap to volunteer organ donation! True, entitlement to basic health care is a human right. That is how it is going to be for the (m)asses, basic with bare necessity. Looking at the way medical services have evolved over the years, it appears like it is only affordable to the demigods. The rest of the mortals can only live their lives on a prayer or just go to hell.


Even God could not help you if you walked on the wild side to cross the wrong aspect of the law, especially if you are born or happen to live on the wrong side of town. How quickly a false arrest, misunderstanding or just being in the wrong place wrong time can develop into something unbailable. Legal representation for the barrel scraper is at the liberty of the unskilled novice defender of justice. With affluence, with the best representation that money can buy, Lady Justice would gladly tilt the scales in your favour. Echoes of wrongful arrests, technicalities, loss of cold chain, incompetencies of the force may be heard loud and clear.

It is 'Animal Farm' all over again where some animals are 'more equal' than others. Some lives matter more than others.